So, we have a policy at work right now where everyone needs to use up a week of their vacation time by the end of July. Nothing ominous there, no, not at all. It couldn’t possibly be indicative of trying to hit artificial numbers to make analysts happy. This isn’t really that unusual in the corporate world, come to think of it, but it is giving us all a sense of low-grade dread.

Anyway. I had a co-worker who was trying very hard to get ready for his week’s furlough but kept having people walk up and interrupt him while he was trying to get his customer cases organized for someone else to watch during his time away. He eventually got so fed up that he went and fetched a whiteboard, set it up outside his cubicle, and wrote

in large red letters.

Well, this served its purpose and drove people off so he could finish his work and get out of the office. That was Friday.

Come Monday, the whiteboard and its rather annoyed message were still in place, and I thought that it needed a little, you know, flair.

Hence:

It’s been a couple of days and everyone’s favorite 90s mascot character is still prominently displayed in our department. I wonder if it will last the week?

Edit: for the record, the word “Bubsy” got erased on July 8, but the picture remains. Hang in there, Bub!

Sep 21: Bubsy remains defiant. Three months and counting. It is my belief that everyone simply accepts that one of our whiteboards is the eternal home of a forgotten mascot.

June 21, 2017: One year later. Bubsy remains. He has become a fixture. He will probably outlast my own tenure at this job. And he’s getting a new game. I have unwittingly opened a portal to some kind of hell dimension.